A breech presentation occurs when the baby's buttocks or feet or both are in place to come out first during birth. Breech presentation is often determined by fetal ultrasound at the end of pregnancy.

This baby is in the frank breech presentation — with both hips flexed and both knees extended and the feet close to the head. The frank breech presentation is the most common type of breech presentation.

At or near term, your health care provider might try to rotate the baby by placing his or her hands on your abdomen and applying pressure (external cephalic version). Your baby's health will be evaluated before and after the procedure. If it is not safe for you to have a vaginal delivery, for example, due to the location of your placenta, your health care provider will not recommend an external cephalic version. The procedure is only done in a setting where a C-section is readily available if needed.

Frequently asked questions. Pregnancy FAQ079. If your baby is breech. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. https://www.acog.org/Patients/FAQs/If-Your-Baby-Is-Breech. Accessed July 24, 2017.

Legal Conditions and Terms

Reprint Permissions

A single copy of these materials may be reprinted for noncommercial personal use only. "Mayo," "Mayo Clinic," "MayoClinic.org," "Mayo Clinic Healthy Living," and the triple-shield Mayo Clinic logo are trademarks of Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.